This blog was originally posted at Women Writers, Women's Books on May 1, 2019. When I was 26 years old, my 54-year-old mom received her doctorate. She had divorced my dad a few years prior, moved from Portland, Oregon to San Francisco, and enrolled in a Ph.D. program that seemed crazy to some of her … Continue reading An event at midlife: crisis, challenge, breakthrough, or opportunity?
Memories
Of trees, transformations, and a visitation
Populus tremuloides, Rocky Mountain front by Kodak, 1981 Memories from my past seeped back into me as I pictured Richard Powers' character Nicholas Hoel view photos documenting a chestnut tree's daily transformation over years as if a flip book. I set down The Overstory, and remembered. Back to a brilliant fall forty years ago in … Continue reading Of trees, transformations, and a visitation
Sadness in the beauty
Sadness in the beauty of the day.My cold fingers ache in half finger cycling gloves, yet early morning sun shines bright enough to need shades. I feel sad in the beauty of it.Sad for those I miss who no longer are here.Sad for those who no longer are as they once were. The stillness of the air, … Continue reading Sadness in the beauty
From Zidell to Illahee: put these bunks to bed
I will admit that rarely has a bunk bed been my favored, most comfortable sleeping spot. Decades ago a fall from my brother's top bunk led to a jagged, sloppily sewn scar I still wear today, created after I struck the corner of a dresser drawer. A decade or so later, I suffered through nights … Continue reading From Zidell to Illahee: put these bunks to bed
Find my friend: then and now
Imagine it to be 1842 in Oregon Country - your spouse hasn't arrived home by nightfall, although expected to return by horseback to Oregon City after a week away in Astoria. As worried as you may be, a logical choice might be....
Time to March on
Yesterday would have been Dad's 89th birthday. It seemed a fitting day to share my final book talk on My Music Man...and to serve cookies. If you've read my memoir, you may recall this excerpt. TWO MONTHS AFTER Dad's death and a few weeks after his memorial service on the steamer Portland, Russ and I … Continue reading Time to March on
Real Oregonians do: in defense of umbrellas
Fellow Oregon author Matt Love penned a terrific book titled Of Walking in Rain. In it, Matt writes about what it is to live in one of the rainiest places on earth - a Western Oregon trait we worry may dry up with time. Anyone living in the Pacific Northwest must read this book, as I … Continue reading Real Oregonians do: in defense of umbrellas
Let’s talk about It
I was going to write a blog about It. Then I read a piece by Atwood, and I didn’t have anything else to say. She said it all, more eloquent than anything I could craft. Fears about It lurk in my dreams and during my awakening. Heightened as I think about our children. Earth as we have known … Continue reading Let’s talk about It
What’s happening on February 14?
Yes, perhaps you plan to celebrate Valentine's Day with someone special. Newcomers to Oregon - and those who haven't paid much attention to history - may need to be reminded that it is also Oregon's birthday. Oregon became the 33rd state on February 14, 1859. And while we can all agree that our history is … Continue reading What’s happening on February 14?
River stories
My new friend, author Robin Cody, suggested he was my Clackamas River Cousin, the one I didn’t know I had. The one related not by blood but of water, of rivers that run and pool, and carry us from today to tomorrow. How is it I had not discovered his writing until now? As I … Continue reading River stories
